Too often, we are taught to believe that our soulmate is someone that we fall head over heels in love with. We are lead to believe that our soulmate is the keeper of our romantic love. The one that we will spend the rest of our lives with. The one that we will “ride or die” for.

Well, this isn’t entirely false.

Except, lately I’ve started to think that maybe our soulmates aren’t the ones that we choose to marry, or the string of on-again-off-again boyfriends that we once had. Maybe, our soulmates are our best friends.

I’d like to believe that mine are. I’d like to believe that the people I will be spending the rest of my life with are the ones that have always been by my side; the love that truly has not altered.

We don’t really take much time to thank our best friends. Sure, we’ll tell them that we appreciate their support when we’re going through a rough time. We’ll give them a shout out on their birthday, and talk about how amazing they are. We’ll smile when they show up at our door with a bottle of wine…or four. But they do so many things for us that go unnoticed.

I want to thank my best friends for answering my phone calls when I’m stranded at the airport and just need someone to talk to. I want to thank them for all the times they have made me laugh when really all I wanted to was cry. For answering my 2am calls even though they are half asleep. For saving me from that guy at the bar who had one too many drinks, and for dancing with me until sunrise. I want to thank them for texting me to make sure I get home safe, or for bringing me chocolate when they know I need it. For the little things.

Thank you for being there through all the heartache, all the breakups, and all the ones that we lost. Thank you for holding my hand during the laughter and during the tears. Thank you for giving me stability through this chaos that we call life.

It’s rare in life to find someone who understands you. Someone who can tell what you’re feeling with just a look or a smirk or an eye roll. Someone who can figure out how you’re feeling, when sometimes you can’t even find the words to express it yourself. I’ve been lucky enough to find more than one of these people. I’ve been lucky enough to find people who would go to battle for me, and for whom I would do the same. I’ve been lucky enough to have more than one soulmate. So this is a thank you to my best friends, the friends that became family, the love that has been there from the very beginning; my real soulmates.